Zen Kin Cousins Postcard Art Project

Hello Cousins!


I am so excited to welcome you to the 2026 Zen Kin Cousins Postcard Art project.


I am so grateful you are here and delighted that you are considering joining this worldwide project. The purpose of my Zen Kin has always been to spread joy—the joy I feel when I draw them and that others often feel when they see them. Together, we will share that joy, encouragement, and sense of community through our Zen Kin Cousins. For this project, you will draw a Zen Kin Cousin on a postcard-style artwork and add an encouraging word for everyone who sees it. A stamp from your country will become part of the artwork. When the pieces arrive at my home from around the world, I will bring them together in a grand gallery of postcard art. Your words and drawings will join a global family of characters created by people from many different places, with each person contributing something meaningful and unique. I appreciate you, and I am truly excited to see these cousins come to life because of you.


Get ready to join a joyful worldwide creative adventure! Begin by watching my video, where I will guide you through each step. You will bring your own whimsical Zen Kin Cousin to life on a 3-by-5-inch postcard-style artwork, then add your name, your place in the world, an encouraging word, and a colorful stamp from your country—or, if you live in the United States, from your state, if available. No previous Zentangle® or drawing experience is needed. Although your creation will look like a postcard, you will mail it to me safely inside an envelope. I will gather the finished pieces in a global gallery filled with one-of-a-kind characters, colorful stamps, and uplifting words that encourage viewers and artists alike. I look forward to seeing all the Zen Kin Cousins displayed together as one creative family.


I look forward to seeing this unique project unfold as we create it together. Please visit KatrinasZenKin.com for blog posts, project updates, and glimpses of the cousins as they arrive. This is a beautiful opportunity to connect through art, encouragement, and mail, so let’s start spreading the joy!

Before You Begin:

  1. Watch: Follow the instructional video before creating your artwork. It shows the complete postcard-style mail-art process, including how to
    prepare the finished piece for mailing in an envelope.
  2. Create: Follow the video to make your postcard-style Zen Kin Cousin.
  3. Mail: Use the mailing address and submission details provided in the video.
  4. Share: Invite others to watch, create, mail, and connect.

What You Will Need

Gather the following items before you begin so you can create along with me as you watch the video. (You do not need specialized art supplies to participate! Use what you already have whenever possible. )

  • Artwork surface: Use a Zentangle® Phi Tile which can be purchased at Zentangle.com or cut a piece of sturdy, light-colored paper to exactly 3 by 5 inches.
  • Drawing pen: Any pen, such as a Micron 01 with archival ink.
  • Blending tool: A tortillon, cotton swab, or tissue
  • Stamp supplies: Bring a small new or canceled postage stamp that stands for your country, city, state, or region. If you do not have one, use the listed supplies to draw your own.
  • Mailing envelope: Bring a regular envelope large enough to protect your finished artwork during mailing.


Zen Kin and Zen Kin Cousins


Zen Kin are whimsical characters drawn with the Zentangle Method, with hair formed from
structured patterns called tangles. Each receives a first name, a middle name, and a date of
birth, giving every character a unique identity. Creating Zen Kin has been one of my
greatest passions during more than ten years as a Certified Zentangle Teacher (CZT®), and
these original characters inspired Zen Kin Cousins so others could experience the joy of
drawing their own. Every Cousin has a distinct personality, yet all belong to one imaginative
family grounded in a belief dear to me: we are all cousins, connected through both our
similarities and our differences. As you draw, I will introduce the basic principles of the
Zentangle Method and guide you through each step. This relaxing, easy-to-learn, and
sometimes meditative approach transforms structured patterns into beautiful art, and seeing
people create and share these joyful characters is one of the most rewarding parts of my
journey.
My Zentangle journey has connected me with thousands of joyful, loving people. I am
grateful to founders Rick Roberts and Maria Thomas for creating this art form and for the
opportunity my certification as a Certified Zentangle Teacher has given me to share it with
others.
Katrina’s Zen Kin Cousins: A Worldwide Project

My earlier Zen Kin Cousins mail-art project connected 720 participants across 31 countries
during the pandemic, showing how one small artwork can create meaningful connections
across distance. I later shared that gallery on my website and published Katrina’s Zen Kin
Cousins: A Worldwide Project, available at Amazon.com. The new 2026 artworks will
form a global gallery on my website and, depending on participation, may also appear in a
book celebrating the art and the connections behind it. Please share this invitation so more
cousins can take part.


A Personal Note from Me
For more than ten years, designing and sharing Zen Kin Cousins around the world has
been a joyful passion of mine. Every cousin that arrives reminds me of people’s generosity
and the connections art can create. Whether you make a cousin or share this invitation,
thank you for helping this creative community grow. Visit KatrinasZenKin.com for
announcements, updates, and gallery news.

Katrina’s Zen Kin

Hi! Thank you for visiting my website!  My name is Katrina, and I am so happy to be the creator of these fun, whimsical characters I call Zen Kin®.  I am an artist who incorporates the Zentangle® method of drawing when creating my Zen Kin®. 

When I complete one of my Zen Kin® it brings me joy to see how their unique personalities emerge.  It is then that I decide a first and middle name for them.  After naming them, I add their date of birth.  Lastly, I add my initials and then they become a permanent member of my Zen Kin® family.  I have created many more Zen Kin® that I will share on this website and am always inspired to create more.

My Zen Kin® art is Zentangle Inspired Art.  The hair and other embellishments are drawn with tangles.  Tangles are repetitive patterns developed by Rick Roberts and Maria Thomas, founders of Zentangle.  These images are drawn using the Zentangle method which enables the artist to be focused and relaxed while drawing. To learn more about Zentangle, visit Zentangle.com.

 I experience joy and relaxation during the process of creating my Zen Kin®.   I have shared the images with many Zentangle enthusiasts and fellow CZTs.  Watching their joy and hearing their comments about the images brings me so much happiness.  I am hoping that my Zen Kin® will also bring you a bit of joy!  

I hope you will come back again and again as I add more and more Zen Kin® to the family.

Introducing my new book, Katrina’s Zen Kin® Cousins: A Worldwide Project, which includes artwork collected from around the world for my Zen Kin® Cousins Project in 2021.

Purchase the book with the following links:

Amazon.com
Amazon.co.uk
Amazon.de
Amazon.fr
Amazon.com.au
Amazon.es
Amazon.it
Amazon.ca

See more on the blog post.

Zen Kin® is the name I have given to these whimsical people that I draw using the Zentangle method. When completed, I give each Zen Kin® a name and document their date of birth.  Learn more about Zentangle here.  See some of my Zen Kin® below.

Visit my Facebook Page or read my Blog.